Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Our little tree kangaroo joey is showing its face a bit more these days. We’re excited to catch and share these glimpses of the joey that is just now starting to emerge from its mother’s pouch at six months—that was a long wait for us to get a peek! A tree kangaroo joey will typically remain in its mother’s pouch for about 10 months. Once out, it’ll continue to return to its mother’s pouch until it is fully weaned, usually at around 13 months. Tree ‘roo mom Elanna is taking good care of the joey and the two are doing well in a quiet, behind-the-scenes exhibit at the zoo. Woodland Park Zoo is home to the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program that is working to protect the endangered tree kangaroo and help maintain the unique biodiversity of its native Papua New Guinea in balance with the culture and needs of human communities. If you’d like to help conserve tree kangaroos, you can go to www.zoo.org/treekangaroo/give , or use your ce

Posted by: Kirsten Pisto, Communications “There goes the barbecue…” Last week we shared some photos from our Bear Affair event held June 4. In our latest video, you can see 700-pound grizzly bear brothers, Keema and Denali, in action. Watch with your sound turned up to hear bear expert and zoo conservation partner Chris Morgan provide insight on bear safety as the grizzlies show us exactly how much damage they can do to our campsites and backyards. Always be bear aware. If we do our part to keep attractants like garbage, birdseed and barbecues contained when camping or living in bear country, practice bear safety and give these animals plenty of space, we can help protect not just bears but people too. And never keep marshmallows in your sleeping bag! For more info on grizzlies, how we're protecting them in Washington state and what you can do to be bear safe, visit: http://bearinfo.org/ . Video shot and edited by Kirsten Pisto/Woodland Park Zoo.

Posted by: Kate Neville, External Relations Save the date! Next Thursday, June 23, the Seattle Foundation is promoting GiveBIG , a communitywide day of online giving to local non-profits. On this day, gifts to Woodland Park Zoo made through the GiveBIG event will be stretched by the Seattle Foundation. This is especially exciting because every dollar will go towards our Campaign for More Wonder More Wild that will not only support our ongoing commitment to animal care, conservation and education, but also help us to build a new, naturalistic exhibit complex for tigers and Asian bears. Our community needs more wonder. Our world needs more wild. Here’s how you can help make that happen: 1) On June 23, from 7:00 a.m. to midnight, visit the zoo’s page on the Seattle Foundation website 2) Click the red DONATE NOW button and make a donation to the zoo through our Seattle Foundation page (this is the only way your gift will count towards the GiveBIG event) 3) Funds from a s

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Exciting news—we’ve made the very first sightings of our Matschie’s tree kangaroo joey! At six months old, the joey is just now beginning to emerge from its mother’s pouch. First the keepers spied only the joey’s ear poking out of the pouch, but within a few days, its whole face emerged. Joey’s face emerges. Photo by Wendy Gardner/Woodland Park Zoo. Born the size of a lima bean in December 2010, the joey has been developing unseen inside its mother’s pouch where it gets nourishment and protection. Tree ‘roo mother, four-year-old Elanna, has been cleaning the joey and providing excellent care. The two are living adjacent to father Huen in a quiet outdoor exhibit behind the scenes at the zoo where keepers can closely monitor the progress of mom and joey. Mother Elanna feeds while joey remains protected in pouch. Photo by Wendy Gardner/Woodland Park Zoo. This rare birth, part of the cooperative breeding Species Survival Plan program fo

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications At Bear Affair this weekend, zookeepers teamed up with bear ecologist Chris Morgan from the Grizzly Bear Outreach Project —a Woodland Park Zoo Partner for Wildlife —to demonstrate what happens if we don’t follow safety precautions when living or camping in bear country. Our partners at GBOP want us all to be Bear Smart and act responsibly to ensure the safety of people and bears. They tell us sanitation and common sense are the keys to preventing problems. Remember, food and odors attract bears. Carelessly stored human food, livestock feed, garbage, and even barbeque grease and bird seed can attract bears and keep them coming back. Do not allow a bear to get a food reward and associate that reward with humans—you may endanger yourself and other people, and the outcome is often the unnecessary death of a bear. Bear Affair visitors learned Bear Smart tips and practices, but if you missed the event, you can find those tips at the GBOP w

Posted by Ric Brewer, Communications At the end of April, the kids at an Upper Eastside Manhattan first-grade class were treated to something special: a "virtual visit" via Skype with Woodland Park zoo penguin keeper, Celine Pardo . The class had been studying penguins and when they discovered that WPZ had won the Association of Zoos & Aquariums' Exhibit Award for our Humboldt penguin exhibit, they sought out to speak with us. After contacting us via email, their teacher Jen arranged the live interview. Celine, along with several penguin props, interacted via Skype with the kids. They had incredibly astute questions for her, gleaned through their studies. The first-graders ask everything from the details of penguin evolution to where are a penguin's ears. Both the kids and Celine had a great time. Here's the note their teacher emailed us immediately following the interview: Before the Skype interview, the kids used books, a few used the Internet, intervi

Posted by: Martin Ramirez, Animal Curator Kyle in his exhibit after surgery. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo.  If you have been out to the African Savanna exhibit recently, you may have noticed a change—one of our patas monkeys now has only one arm. We thought you might have some questions about what happened to him, so we’d like to share with you his story. Kyle, a 6-year-old, male patas monkey, was recently being treated for a severe infection in the bones around his right shoulder. After the usual antibiotic treatments failed to stop the spread of the infection—jeopardizing his overall health—our keeper staff, animal health team and consulting veterinarians from the Animal Surgical Clinic determined the best course of action would be to amputate Kyle’s right limb. Kyle (left) with partner Alexa. Photo by Anne Nichols/Woodland Park Zoo. Why amputation? Not only would it rid Kyle’s body of the infection quickly, but it would also prevent the return of the life-threatening bloo